The Heat of Battle
by JoshTheWriter
Summary: At the top of a mountain, back against the wall, hope of victory fading... This is what he lives for.


_Hello everyone! This little one-shot is for the Pokewrite summer __2019 contest. It has since been updated with an extra scene not in the original._

* * *

The snow whipped angrily across the peak of Mount Silver. It blew sideways, icy cold wind stabbing into the boy's eyes as he ascended towards the summit. The typhlosion at his side grunted in discomfort, urging the flames on his back higher. The snow falling behind the pair burst into steam as it fell, never even reaching the ground.

"Thanks, " said the boy. "Lance never said it was so cold up here."

His typhlosion pressed its snout into the boy's hand, an attempt to provide some comfort to the child. The boy huddled closer to his starter and sighed in relief as blessed warmth returned some feeling to his hands.

"Go to the top of Mount Silver, " he muttered. "Find the only trainer stronger than you." He shook his head in frustration as he furiously rubbed his hands together for warmth. "Stupid damn dragon tamer. Why couldn't this guy have just answered a damn phone call?"

He rounded the bend and finally looked up at the summit. The relentless climb was over, the mountain finally flattening out. The silhouette of a child, not much taller than him was barely visible through the blowing snow. He could make out the shape of the cap on the boy's head and the Pikachu on his shoulder and knew he had found his opponent.

"Hey!" he shouted up at the figure. "You Red?" He lifted one of the balls off his belt and grinned despite the cold. "I'm Gold! I'm here to battle you. I heard that you were the strongest trainer ever to pass through Indigo." He tossed the ball into the air, catching it despite his half-frozen digits. "Everyone keeps telling me that I'm the strongest trainer they've seen since you rolled through the League."

The figure said nothing, merely reaching down to his belt. A hulking figure appeared with a flash of light, towering over Gold and shaking the entire summit with every step.

Gold tossed his ball into the air, the heat of battle bringing feeling back to his extremities. His ursaring appeared in its own flash of light. She narrowed her eyes as she locked gaze with the snorlax facing her.

"Straight to battle, eh?" Gold called across the snowy plateau. He planted his feet in the snow, ignoring the numb feeling that crept into his toes. "I like that."

The boy pointed forward, eyes blazing under the brim of his hat. His snorlax bellowed a challenge and barrelled towards Gold.

Gold didn't even need to give the order. His ursaring braced itself for the blow and planted her claws in the ice. The snorlax slammed into his pokemon, waves of blubber and fat crashing into a stoic wall of muscle and claws.

"Hammer arm!" Gold shouted eagerly.

His ursaring shoved the snorlax back and reared back on her hind legs. She brought a heavy paw down on her opponent's head, a crushing blow that Gold had seen break apart solid rock.

The snorlax barely even flinched.

Gold was awestruck. Ursaring was one of his most physically powerful pokemon. To see one of her most powerful attacks have next to no effect was disheartening.

The snorlax bellowed and grabbed hold of Ursaring's paw. Gold heard a painful crack and winced audibly at the injury.

Red barely twitched again, and his eyes flashed at Gold. He wore a confident grin on his face, as if he knew the outcome of the battle already.

Snorlax opened his maw, unleashing the hyper beam that had been building. Ursaring flew across the summit, crashing to a halt inches from Gold. Her fur was smoking and patchy, burnt off from the force of the attack.

Gold wrinkled his nose, the stench of burning hair invading his nose. He silently lifted Ursaring's ball and returned it without moving his eyes off Red. Despite the early knockout, his grin was as present as ever. "You really are the strongest then. I've never faced anyone who could take down Ursaring that easy." He paused for a minute, studying his opponent. "Why did you really disappear?"

Red shook his head slowly. His burning eyes met Gold's and a coy smile appeared on his face. He held one finger up to his lips as if to shush Gold.

Gold's grin faded. His hand dropped to his belt, lifting another ball. "I guess we'll just have to settle this the old fashioned way."

He tossed the ball in the air, supreme confidence gone. A pair of armoured feet thudded into the snow, unphased by the icy winds buffetting the battle. The tyranitar roared, a sound so loud that it shook the mountain. Gold was sure that he could hear the distant sound of the mountain rumbling back, an avalanche somewhere further down the mountain likely caused by his largest pokemon.

Gold frowned, grim determination replacing his confident grin. " Let's show them who's really the strongest."

His tyranitar bellowed and charged, slamming into the snorlax with reckless abandon. The two titans shook the mountain with their clash, likely igniting more avalanches below.

For a moment, Gold's mind idly wandered to the worry that any other hikers would be washed away by the falling snow. He pushed the thought from his mind, making a mental note to tell Lance that sending him to fight Red on top of a mountain was a poor choice of location.

The battle shifted back and forth, neither pokemon gaining an advantage. Red's Snorlax was deceptively fast for a beast of its size, but his tyranitar was a stubborn and indomitable foe. They would have stayed locked in a mortal embrace for ages, the battle lasting until one of them faded from exhaustion.

Gold breathed a sigh of relief as the snorlax fell, nearly toppling off the mountain before Red could return it to its ball.

Red barely even broke eye contact with him as he reached down to his belt again. A Lapras appeared from the flash of light, right at home in the ice and snow.

Gold barely even spoke, remaining silent and letting his pokemon's instincts guide the battle. Icy blasts of wind and snow whipped across the summit, reducing the visibility to nothing.

The blizzard slowed, abating enough for Gold to make out the prone figure of his tyranitar. He grimaced and returned the beast with a frown. His hand dropped towards his belt, lightly brushing against a pair of the balls sitting there. For once, he was going to have to work for it.

* * *

It was a battle unlike any that Gold had ever faced. Every single move he made was met with a counter. Every gambit he attempted was shut down by the team of monsters that Red trained. For the first time since he had left New Bark, he felt as if the battle was slipping away from him.

He traded his ampharos for the lapras, losing the electric type in the process. Red had responded by sending out a monster of a charizard that had taken down his noctowl without even facing an attack in return.

Finally, Gold had let out his trump card. The Red Gyarados rarely got a chance to battle in Gold's conquest of the league. But when it did, titans fell like wheat before a scythe. The Red Wyrm had never been defeated in battle, save for by Gold himself on the day he captured the beast.

It had been the Lake of Rage's most terrifying monster that had cut through Lance's championship team, leaving the dragon master in awe of its sheer power. No pokemon that Gold had ever faced could measure up to the Red Wyrm's ferocious nature.

However, Red's Charizard was cut from the same cloth. She was a relic of a different, more savage time. She had never known a foe that would not fall to her fire and fangs. But she had never faced the Red Wyrm before.

The summit shook with the force of their clash. Gold was sure that the mountain itself would buckle under the battle unfolding at its peak. Scorching flames licked the snow clean off the rocky plateau, melting it until rushing rivers ran down the sides of Mount Silver.

The beasts separated after what seemed like an eternity. They stared down their opponent, battle wounds dotting their hides and chests heaving with exhaustion.

Gold had remained silent, nervously glancing between Red and his pokemon. He had never been pushed like this. Not one opponent had really challenged him, and he was beginning to regret that. Not even Team Rocket's leaders had been able to force him into such a desperate situation.

Red barely even had to move. His pokemon seemed to move in concert with his thoughts, effortlessly countering every strategy Gold threw at them. Red truly was the greatest trainer that Gold had ever seen. It was little wonder that Lance had spoken in such reverent terms when he described Red to him.

The Red Wyrm roared and opened its maw. A beam of iridescent energy tore forth, drowning out the rest of the world in a storm of light and sound.

A torrential stream of fire met the beam halfway to its target. Gold barely had time to draw in a breath before a second sun ignited on the peak of Mount Silver. Heat and light washed over the summit, lighting up the evening sky. He shut his eyes, throwing his arms up to shield his face from the brilliant explosion.

The heat faded, the icy bite of mountain air sinking back into his skin. Gold opened his eyes, praying that the Red Wyrm had done the impossible.

He gasped at the sight that greeted him. Both pokemon lay flat on the plateau, clearly unconscious. He grimaced at the sight, sure that his prospects of turning the battle around were slipping away.

He turned his head to look at his starter, defeat worn clearly on his face. "Think you can take him?" he asked, feigning confidence.

His loyal typhlosion growled, flaring the flames of his back. He had never failed his trainer and he would not fail him today.

Gold grinned despite his desperation, some of his confidence returning. "Then let's finish this battle, " he said.

He looked up at Red, his heart pounding. Adrenaline coursed through his veins and his palms were slick with sweat. This was what his entire training career had lead to. All his efforts, all his perseverance had lead to this moment. And he wouldn't trade it for the world.

* * *

Gold's feet treaded the dirt path with purpose. He walked alone, his pokemon retired to their balls for their well earned rest.

The battle played out in his mind a thousand times. Every move, every blow repeating itself in his mind. Theories and tactics whizzed through his mind, half mad ideas forming for his next battle with the master he had faced.

There was something raw and primal about the rush of emotion running through his mind. The thrill of having his back forced up against the wall and breaking through his limits had ignited a fire that had started to fade during his league challenge.

He looked up at the peak with a soft grin. One thing was definitely certain. He would be back.

* * *

_This is based off my own battle with Red. Did I win? Did I lose? You decide! Cookies to whoever guessed correct!_


End file.
